Bukavu
Encyclopedia
Bukavu is a city in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo
(DRC), lying at the extreme south-eastern extent of Lake Kivu
, west of Cyangugu
in Rwanda
, and separated from it by the outlet of the Ruzizi River
. It is the capital of the Sud-Kivu
province and as of 2009 it had an estimated population of 241,690., with another 250,000 people living in the surrounding towns and villages.
colonial authorities. Originally named Costermansville (or Costermansstad in Dutch) until 1954, it had a prominent European population under colonial rule. They were attracted by the subtropical climate (Lake Kivu is 1,500 metres above sea level) and scenic location (Bukavu is built on five peninsulas and has been described as "a green hand, dipped in the lake"). Many colonial villas have gardens sloping down to the shore.
By contrast, the main residential district for ordinary people, Kadutu, climbs up the hillside inland. The surrounding hills reach a height of 2,000 metres.
Formerly an administrative centre
for the whole of the Kivu
region, the town lost some of its status as result of the growth of Goma
.
Following the Rwandan Genocide
, Hutu
refugee
s and many members of the former Hutu-led government fled as part of the Great Lakes refugee crisis
. The refugee camps around Goma and Bukavu became a center of the Hutu
insurgency from the camps against the new Watutsi government of Rwanda
. In November 1996 at the start of the First Congo War
, Rwandan government forces consequently attacked the Hutu camps, and forces of the then Zaire
government which allowed the insurgency. The Rwandan government supported rebels in Zaire led by Laurent Kabila who overthrew the Kinshasa government with their help, and then fell out with them, leading to the Second Congo War
. Rwanda supported the rebel Rally for Congolese Democracy
(RCD) against Kabila. The RCD was dominated by the Banyamulenge
, and Bukavu which with the rest of Sud-Kivu was held by the RCD saw sporadic fighting between rebels and government forces and their proxies, including the Mayi-Mayi, especially in 1998 and 2004.
On June 3, 2004, protestors in several Congolese cities took to the streets to demonstrate against the United Nations
for failing to prevent Bukavu from falling to Rwandan-backed RCD forces led by General Nkunda
. About 16,000 women were raped on a single weekend after General Nkunda told his troops "This city is yours for three days." In September 2007 Nkunda, who had been persuaded to fall in line with the peace accords which ended the war and re-integrate his troops with the Congolese government forces, again rebelled and started attacking government troops north of Goma.
and the functioning eastern section of the Trans-African Highway to Mombasa
may allow a faster recovery than other Congolese towns. Bukavu's proximity to the Lake Tanganyika
ports of Bujumbura
and Kalundu-Uvira
give it an additional advantage, with access on the lake to the railhead
s of Kigoma
(linked to Dar es Salaam
) and Kalemie
(rail link to Katanga
, in need of rehabilitation). Isolation, largely due to bad road infrastructure, has been found to be an important determinant of wealth and/or development in South Kivu.
Bukavu has numerous lakeside wharves
and boat transport is used extensively in the Congolese waters of the lake in the absence of well maintained roads.
Kavumu Airport
(ICAO code:FZMA, IATA code: BKY) located about 30 kilometres north is the domestic airport for Bukavu.
, Jules Ohelo.
Bukavu is also home to the Catholic University of Bukavu's School of Medicine and General Reference teaching hospital.
The pharmaceutical factory Pharmakina owned by a German immigrant produces the antimalarial drug quinine
and the generic AIDS
medicament Afri-vir. Pharmakina also runs an AIDS diagnostic and treatment center.. With 740 employees and about 1000 free-lance workers Pharmakina is the largest employer in town.
in August 2007 launched a project for women's trauma healing and care, based in Bukavu.
from Lake Kivu, in which vast quantities of dissolved carbon dioxide and methane could explode from the lake and threaten the lives of the 2 million people who live near the lake.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
(DRC), lying at the extreme south-eastern extent of Lake Kivu
Lake Kivu
Lake Kivu is one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, a part of the Great Rift Valley. Lake Kivu empties into the Ruzizi River, which flows southwards into Lake Tanganyika...
, west of Cyangugu
Cyangugu
Cyangugu is a city and capital of the Rusizi district of Western Province, Rwanda. The city lies at the southern end of Lake Kivu, and is contiguous with Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, but separated from it by the Ruzizi River...
in Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, and separated from it by the outlet of the Ruzizi River
Ruzizi River
The Ruzizi , is a river which flows from Lake Kivu to Lake Tanganyika in Central Africa, descending rapidly from about 1,500 metres above sea level to about 770 metres above sea level over its length...
. It is the capital of the Sud-Kivu
Sud-Kivu
Sud-Kivu is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Bukavu.Following the 2005 Constitution , 25 new provinces were to be created from the 10 current provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
province and as of 2009 it had an estimated population of 241,690., with another 250,000 people living in the surrounding towns and villages.
History
Bukavu is part of the ancient territory of Bushi Kingdom, the main ethnic group of South-Kivu. It was governed by a “Muluzi” Nyalukemba, when the first Arabs, then the European arrived in Bushi at the end of the 19th century. (“Muluzi” or “Baluzi” in the plural means « the nobleman or nobility to Shi. It is equivalent to Watutsi or Tutsi in Kinyarwanda. Before the Europeans came in Bushi Kingdom, Bukavu was called “Rusozi”. The name Bukavu comes from the transformation of word 'bu 'nkafu ' (farm of cows) in Mashi, the language of Bashi. Bukavu was established in 1901 by the BelgianBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
colonial authorities. Originally named Costermansville (or Costermansstad in Dutch) until 1954, it had a prominent European population under colonial rule. They were attracted by the subtropical climate (Lake Kivu is 1,500 metres above sea level) and scenic location (Bukavu is built on five peninsulas and has been described as "a green hand, dipped in the lake"). Many colonial villas have gardens sloping down to the shore.
By contrast, the main residential district for ordinary people, Kadutu, climbs up the hillside inland. The surrounding hills reach a height of 2,000 metres.
Formerly an administrative centre
Administrative centre
An administrative centre is a term often used in several countries to refer to a county town, or other seat of regional or local government, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located....
for the whole of the Kivu
Kivu
Kivu was the name for a large "Region" in the Democratic Republic of Congo under the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko that bordered Lake Kivu. It included three "Sub-Regions" : Nord-Kivu, Sud-Kivu and Maniema, corresponding to the three current provinces created in 1986...
region, the town lost some of its status as result of the growth of Goma
Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the western branch of the Great Rift Valley, and Goma lies only 13 to 18 km due south of the crater of the active...
.
Following the Rwandan Genocide
Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
, Hutu
Hutu
The Hutu , or Abahutu, are a Central African people, living mainly in Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo.-Population statistics:The Hutu are the largest of the three peoples in Burundi and Rwanda; according to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, 84% of Rwandans and 85% of Burundians...
refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
s and many members of the former Hutu-led government fled as part of the Great Lakes refugee crisis
Great Lakes refugee crisis
The Great Lakes refugee crisis is the common name for the situation beginning with the exodus in April 1994 of over two million Rwandans to neighboring countries of the Great Lakes region of Africa in the aftermath of the Rwandan Genocide...
. The refugee camps around Goma and Bukavu became a center of the Hutu
Hutu
The Hutu , or Abahutu, are a Central African people, living mainly in Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo.-Population statistics:The Hutu are the largest of the three peoples in Burundi and Rwanda; according to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, 84% of Rwandans and 85% of Burundians...
insurgency from the camps against the new Watutsi government of Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
. In November 1996 at the start of the First Congo War
First Congo War
The First Congo War was a revolution in Zaire that replaced President Mobutu Sésé Seko, a decades-long dictator, with rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Destabilization in eastern Zaire that resulted from the Rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external actors...
, Rwandan government forces consequently attacked the Hutu camps, and forces of the then Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
government which allowed the insurgency. The Rwandan government supported rebels in Zaire led by Laurent Kabila who overthrew the Kinshasa government with their help, and then fell out with them, leading to the Second Congo War
Second Congo War
The Second Congo War, also known as Coltan War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; however, hostilities continue to this...
. Rwanda supported the rebel Rally for Congolese Democracy
Rally for Congolese Democracy
The Congolese Rally for Democracy, sometimes Rally for Congolese Democracy, was a rebel group operating in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Assisted by the government of Rwanda, it was a major factor in the Second Congo War . It became a political party in 2003...
(RCD) against Kabila. The RCD was dominated by the Banyamulenge
Banyamulenge
The Banyamulenge is a term historically describing the ethnic Tutsi Rwandans concentrated on the High Plateau of South Kivu, in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo , close to the Burundi-Congo-Rwanda border...
, and Bukavu which with the rest of Sud-Kivu was held by the RCD saw sporadic fighting between rebels and government forces and their proxies, including the Mayi-Mayi, especially in 1998 and 2004.
On June 3, 2004, protestors in several Congolese cities took to the streets to demonstrate against the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
for failing to prevent Bukavu from falling to Rwandan-backed RCD forces led by General Nkunda
Laurent Nkunda
Laurent Nkunda or Laurent Nkundabatware, or Laurent Nkunda Batware, or as he prefers to be called The Chairman — is a former General in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo and is the former warlord operating in the province of Nord-Kivu, sympathetic to Congolese Tutsis and the...
. About 16,000 women were raped on a single weekend after General Nkunda told his troops "This city is yours for three days." In September 2007 Nkunda, who had been persuaded to fall in line with the peace accords which ended the war and re-integrate his troops with the Congolese government forces, again rebelled and started attacking government troops north of Goma.
Transport
Bukavu was an important transport hub and gateway to eastern DR Congo, but as a result of the wars the road network has deteriorated and highways to Goma, Kisangani and other towns have not been fully restored. As with Goma, close proximity to the paved road network of East AfricaEast Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
and the functioning eastern section of the Trans-African Highway to Mombasa
Lagos-Mombasa Highway
The Lagos-Mombasa Highway is Trans-African Highway 8 and is principal road route between West and East Africa...
may allow a faster recovery than other Congolese towns. Bukavu's proximity to the Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake. It is estimated to be the second largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, and the second deepest, after Lake Baikal in Siberia; it is also the world's longest freshwater lake...
ports of Bujumbura
Bujumbura
-Education:The University of Burundi is located in Bujumbura.Hope Africa University is located in BujumburaUniversité du Lac Tanganyika is located in Bujumbura-External links:**...
and Kalundu-Uvira
Uvira
Uvira is a city in Sud-Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo, located at the extreme north end of Lake Tanganyika. There is a lake port called Kalundu at the southern end of the town, which provides links by boat to Kalemie, Kigoma in Tanzania, and Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi.The town...
give it an additional advantage, with access on the lake to the railhead
Railhead
The word railhead is a railway term with two distinct meanings, depending upon its context.Sometimes, particularly in the context of modern freight terminals, the word is used to denote a terminus of a railway line, especially if the line is not yet finished, or if the terminus interfaces with...
s of Kigoma
Kigoma
Kigoma is a town and lake port in western Tanzania, on the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika and close to the border with Burundi. It serves as the capital for the surrounding Kigoma Region and has a population of 135,234 and an elevation of 775 m.The historic trading town of Ujiji is 6 km...
(linked to Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam , formerly Mzizima, is the largest city in Tanzania. It is also the country's richest city and a regionally important economic centre. Dar es Salaam is actually an administrative province within Tanzania, and consists of three local government areas or administrative districts: ...
) and Kalemie
Kalemie
Kalemie, formerly Albertville/Albertstad, is a town on the western shore of Lake Tanganyika in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The town is next to the exit of the Lukuga River flowing out from Lake Tanganyika to the Lualaba River....
(rail link to Katanga
Katanga Province
Katanga Province is one of the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Between 1971 and 1997, its official name was Shaba Province. Under the new constitution, the province was to be replaced by four smaller provinces by February 2009; this did not actually take place.Katanga's regional...
, in need of rehabilitation). Isolation, largely due to bad road infrastructure, has been found to be an important determinant of wealth and/or development in South Kivu.
Bukavu has numerous lakeside wharves
Wharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...
and boat transport is used extensively in the Congolese waters of the lake in the absence of well maintained roads.
Kavumu Airport
Kavumu Airport
Kavumu Airport is the domestic airport serving Bukavu, the capital city of the Sud-Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The airport is located about north of Bukavu.- Facilities :...
(ICAO code:FZMA, IATA code: BKY) located about 30 kilometres north is the domestic airport for Bukavu.
Medical care
Bukavu is home to the Panzi HospitalPanzi Hospital
Panzi Hospital was founded in 1999 in Bukavu, the capital of the Sud-Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It specializes in treating survivors of violence, the large majority of whom have been sexually abused.Director Dr...
, Jules Ohelo.
Bukavu is also home to the Catholic University of Bukavu's School of Medicine and General Reference teaching hospital.
The pharmaceutical factory Pharmakina owned by a German immigrant produces the antimalarial drug quinine
Quinine
Quinine is a natural white crystalline alkaloid having antipyretic , antimalarial, analgesic , anti-inflammatory properties and a bitter taste. It is a stereoisomer of quinidine which, unlike quinine, is an anti-arrhythmic...
and the generic AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
medicament Afri-vir. Pharmakina also runs an AIDS diagnostic and treatment center.. With 740 employees and about 1000 free-lance workers Pharmakina is the largest employer in town.
Status of Women
Women continue to face major problems of violence in the wake of war in the eastern DRC. Fondation chireziFondation Chirezi
is a local non-governmental organisation established in the African Great Lakes Region by Floribert Kazingufu Kasirusiru . The core objective of FOCHI is to build a campaign for a non-killing society in the Great Lakes Region - eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo which has...
in August 2007 launched a project for women's trauma healing and care, based in Bukavu.
Natural hazards
Although not threatened by volcanoes as Goma is, Bukavu is equally in danger from a potential limnic eruptionLimnic eruption
A limnic eruption, also referred to as a lake overturn, is a rare type of natural disaster in which carbon dioxide suddenly erupts from deep lake water, suffocating wildlife, livestock and humans. Such an eruption may also cause tsunamis in the lake as the rising CO2 displaces water. Scientists...
from Lake Kivu, in which vast quantities of dissolved carbon dioxide and methane could explode from the lake and threaten the lives of the 2 million people who live near the lake.
Other features
- Kahuzi-Biéga National ParkKahuzi-Biéga National ParkKahuzi-Biéga National Park is in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, 50 km west of the town of Bukavu in the Kivu Region, near to the western side of Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border....
, a World Heritage SiteWorld Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
and one of two homes of the Eastern Lowland GorillaEastern Lowland GorillaThe Eastern Lowland Gorilla is a subspecies of Eastern Gorilla that is now only found in the forests of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, is close to the city and can be accessed from the road to Kavumu. The park headquarters at Tshivanga is located 31 km from Bukavu.
External links
- Detailed Map of Bukavu Worldwide Bukavu Community Website Spiegel-Online article
- Panzi Hospital of Bukavu
- See http://www.3tamis.org, the web site of Bukavu and his area. Beautiful pictures, vidéos, stories and the "Pages jaunes de Bukavu"
- Pictures of Bukavu, previously Costermansville